Montville - The former interim principal of St. Bernard High School denied
Wednesday having sexually abused two brothers who are accusing him in a
California civil suit.
When asked Wednesday in a telephone interview whether the allegations were
valid, the Rev. Santino A. Casimano said, "Of course not."

The suit, filed against the Diocese of Gallup, New Mexico, where he was
ordained in 1975, charges that the abuse occurred 26 years ago. Casimano
said he remembers his accusers but the memories are "very, very dim."

After an assembly for students, faculty and staff at the Catholic high
school in Uncasville Tuesday, the Most Rev. Michael R. Cote, bishop of
the Norwich diocese, released a statement saying that Casimano resigned
as interim principal when he was notified of the allegations.

"My heart goes out to Father Casimano, but in light of the Charter
for the Protection of Children and Young People, there is no other option,"
Cote said. The charter is the diocese's policy for handling allegations
of abuse.

The bishop told students at the assembly that if anyone had been inappropriately
treated, they should come forward and the church would assist them.

Casimano said he resigned out of deep concern for the school.

"I think it was best for the school, which was my number one concern.
I resigned and said it would be best that I not be present in any way,
shape or form at the school unless it was to clear my things," he
said.

Asked if further allegations could be made against him, particularly
from his tenure at St. Bernard, Casimano said, "1 don't see how it
could be possible. My God, I would be absolutely astounded if anybody
would ever come forward, unless someone would mistake a pat on the shoulder,
like teachers do."

A court clerk in Orange County, Calif., said Wednesday that her office
did not have a record of the civil suit against the Diocese of Gallup,
in which Casimano is named. She said the suit may be buried in an influx
of civil suits filed in the waning hours of 2003 to meet a state-imposed
deadline.

A special law allowed people who claimed to have been abused by clergy
to file suit even if they had passed the age of 26, normally the age at
which the statute of limitations applies.

Casimano said that an attorney for the Gallup diocese informed him that
he is not a direct defendant in the suit. Casimano said he and several
other priests are named in the narrative section of the suit as having
committed improper acts.

During the mid-1970s, while under the jurisdiction of the Diocese of
Gallup, Casimano said, he went to work for the Diocese of Orange in California.
It is during this time that the accusations are alleged to have happened.

Casimano said he has received only a letter from the law firm representing
the Gallup diocese and has not seen a copy of the suit. He said he believes
there will not be a trial because the diocese and the plaintiffs are proceeding
with mediation.

The Gallup diocese's chancellor and spokesman, Deacon Timoteo Lujan,
said Tuesday that the the diocese had not been served with a lawsuit pertaining
to Casimano as of that day.

Casimano said that on Jan. 7, immediately after receiving notice from
the Gallup diocese's attorney, he contacted Cote. The two met on the morning
of Jan. 8, Casimano said, and he then informed the bishop about the allegations.
Casimano said he then resigned from his post at St. Bernard and his weekend
assignment at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church in Quaker Hill.

Casimano had been at St. Bernard since 1998, starting as a volunteer
adjunct faculty member. He was named head of the theology department and
appointed chaplain in August 2000. He has been the interim principal since
July.

The shock of the accusations against this popular principal and teacher
and retired Navy chaplain, was still fresh Wednesday.

"He was an all-around great guy," said former student Brian
Martin by phone from his dorm at Assumption College in Worcester Wednesday.
"I talked to him a lot during my senior year about school and college
decisions. He helped me a lot with my choices."

Martin, a 2002 graduate from Gales Ferry, recalled Casimano meeting with
student athletes prior to a match or game to offer prayer.

"I can't see him committing what he's been accused of," Martin
said. "I have nothing bad to say about him."

Norwich Diocesan Superintendent of Schools Howard Bennett, who is also
now the acting principal at the high school, said that students and staff
remained concerned about the situation but that normal school schedules
resumed Wednesday. A counselor and a priest were available to those who
needed to discuss the situation and teachers were free to discuss the
events with their students.

Bennett said the search has begun for a new principal. The school's Board
of Advisors expects to review resumes in late February.

Bennett said he will send a letter to parents this week assuring them
that the high school, and the St. Bernard Academy, its middle school,
are "thriving and viable institutions" that will "move
forward through this personal tragedy."